The Animation FIX for HotU seems to help with client crashes. Make sure you follow the installation instructions (one file needs to be removed). UPDATE: According to BioWare, the client crash due to other players coming out of stealth (that required these animations to avoid) has been fixed with patch 1.69.

The Bastions of War guild has an ongoing character build contest, which includes helpful information on creating fun and powerful characters. Submit your favorite builds to win prizes, including a custom character appearance.

To view these custom portraits in-game, unzip the five TGA files to your NWN portraits directory. To submit a custom portrait, please email them to Lord Alexander and include your player login name, character name, and the portrait creator. To create your own portraits, see the BioWare tutorial.

These altered 2da files are used on the BoW server:
restduration.2da: Reduces the rest duration to nearly instantaneous.
classes.2da: Removes class alignment restrictions.
spells.2da: Removes the somatic components for the Amplify and War Cry spells (like the bugged version prior to patch 1.69).
feat.2da: Changes the Dragon Shape feat prerequisite of Wild Shape 6x/day to 5x/day (like the bugged version prior to patch 1.69).

You may also want to use custom portraits.2da & soundset.2da files (such as this one), so you may select the portraits and soundsets of NPCs and creatures during character creation.

Just place the 2da files in your NWN override directory, and they will be active for local games. Please note that the 2da files can interfere with hak packs and other servers, so you may want to remove them before playing elsewhere.